Destiny Rewritten: Swimming Against the Stream
by IdealisticSoul
Summary: A short story, containing a different ending for 'Tied by Destiny', branched from chapter 18th.
1. Maker's Mercy

**Bioware owns Ferelden, Thedas, Dragon Age characters.**

**This story contains spoilers for Dragon Age.**

Summary : A short story, containing a different ending for 'Tied by Destiny', branched from chapter 18th.

_Warning __: You need to read chapters 1 to 17 from story 'Tied by Destiny' in order to understand the events described in the following chapters._

_Dedicated to Anders from the story 'Tied by Destiny'._

_Many, many, many, many, many, many, many, many, many, many … infinite thanks to my Beta Reader __**Zeeji**__!_

**Chapter 18 : Maker's Mercy**

"_Open thy gate of mercy, gracious God, My soul flies through these wounds to seek out thee." - __William Shakespeare_

As Anders entered the Fade, he was greeted by two desire demons that were standing there, close to the entrance, like they had been expecting him.

"Well, well, look who's coming! My sweet mage, I've missed you, my dear!" said one of the demons smiling to Anders, then it started to take Elissa's form.

"Hey, you're the demon from my dreams!" said Anders surprised.

"Yes, it's me, dear, I told you that we'll meet again, sweet mage", whispered the Elissa-demon.

"You look like you've been expecting me!" said Anders.

"You just fell into our little trap, sweet mage!" said the other demon.

"And you've found a friend! How nice of you!"said Anders looking at the other desire demon.

The other desire demon smiled at Anders, then shifted to Alistair's form.

"She's found an ally, mage!" said the Alistair-demon.

"Really? And who are you?" asked Anders raising an eyebrow.

The Alistair-demon smiled wickedly at Anders, taking on Elissa's form for a few moments only to shape-shift again into Alistair.

"I'm _their_ demon! I'm Alistair and Elissa's demon!" said the Alistair-demon.

"Really? You're _their_ demon? I've never heard of such a thing … maybe you're a confused demon … you didn't decide yet which form you want to have?" said Anders in a sarcastic tone.

The Alistair-demon laughed. "Their souls are connected, tied together by the Maker Himself! I was feasting on their delicious desire for each other for almost a year, tormenting both their dreams … feeding on both of them at the same time … until you showed up, mage! You ruined _everything_!" said the Alistair-demon.

"I've told you not to interfere with them, sweet mage! He's a very powerful demon, my friend here! You should have listened to me; you should have accepted my offer!" said the Elissa-demon.

"Oh, please, let's just prepare for battle, shall we?" said Anders as he started to cast a spell.

"You cannot win this fight, sweet mage! Just listen to our offer!" said the Elissa-demon.

"I don't make deals with demons!" yelled Anders.

"We shall break you and then I shall make you mine, sweet mage. Then my friend here will possess your beautiful wife!" said the Elissa-demon.

"Never!" yelled Anders.

"I shall torment you until you'll accept me inside you, sweet mage!" said the Elissa-demon.

"I'd rather__die!" he said.

"I don't want to kill you, just use you!" said the Elissa-demon.

"I won't let you!" said Anders.

"Let my friend inside you and I shall spear your beautiful wife, I shall possess__Alistair instead!" said the Alistair-demon.

"No!" said Anders.

"If you die, then my friend here will _still_ get out and possess your wife, sweet mage! Listen to me, make the deal! Let me inside you, I promise I won't harm you, we shall bound and I shall see the world of the living through your eyes!" said the Elissa-demon.

"I don't like this '_bonding_' idea!" said Anders.

"Or my friend here can hold you while I possess you forcefully, but this will hurt … badly, let me in willingly and I promise you won't feel a thing!" said the Elissa-demon.

Anders looked at the two desire demons in front of him. They were both very powerful, he could feel their strength. And there were two of them. He could defeat one, but two of them at the same time, hardly.

"You said this was a trap?" asked Anders, trying to buy some more time to think about a solution.

"Yes, we've made a deal with Thomas, the mage that sent you in. We gave him a cure for Anora's sickness. He was supposed to capture you too and deliver you to us, but I think he tried to double-cross us!So, we watched and waited for him to tear the Veil. Then we blocked the opening, knowing he would have to send you in to unblock it. I don't think he realized exactly what he did!" said the Alistair-demon laughing.

Anders took a deep breath and thought hard about his options _'They can possess me forcefully … but I simply cannot let them!' _he thought looking at the two demons in front of him. '_There is only one way out of this situation!_' thought Anders and prepared to cast a spell.

"I guess he wants to fight!" said the Elissa-demon preparing to attack Anders.

"Such a waste," said the Alistair-demon preparing to attack Anders too.

But Anders's spell did not attack the demons, he aimed for the portal that was linking the Fade to the world of the living. He destroyed the exit, sealing the rift into the Veil from inside.

"What have you done, sweet mage? Now you're trapped here, too!" said the Elissa-demon.

"And now that__you're of no use to us, we'll just kill you!" said the Alistair-demon.

"You can definitely try!" said Anders preparing to cast another__ spell.' _He will take care of them! He promised me!_' thought Anders thinking about Elissa and Ela.

The demons transformed in their natural shape and started to attack.

"Leave him alone, demons!" said a spirit shaped in the form of a warrior, who appeared suddenly from behind the demons.

"He's ours! Don't interfere, spirit!" said one of the desire demons.

"This is not your business, spirit!" said the other desire demon.

"Leave him or die, demons!" yelled the warrior-spirit.

"Justice, is that you?" asked Anders as he recognized the voice.

"Yes, it's me Anders!" said Justice to Anders, placing himself between the mage and the demons.

"Why are you protecting this sweet mage, spirit?" asked one of the desire demons.

"The Maker sent me! It is His will! Leave of die, demons!" said Justice drawing his weapon.

The demons got closer to each other, whispered something to one another for a few moments, then they both turned to look at Justice again.

"Very well, then, we shall leave!" said one of the demons and then they both disappeared.

"Uh, thanks, Justice!" said Anders smiling to the spirit warrior in front of him.

"You're welcome, now follow me, the Maker is expecting you!" said Justice as he started__to walk into the Fade.

"Really? The Maker? Why? Is He going to send me back?" asked Anders surprised, as he followed Justice through the Fade.

"Yes, Anders, The Maker, and yes again, She … I mean He's going to save you." said Justice.

"Really? Wait … you said He is a She? That would explain a lot of things!" said Anders smirking, "Well, I hope She's hotter than Andraste!" said Anders with a grin from ear to ear.

"It's neither a 'He' or a 'She'!" said Justice in a harsh tone.

Justice and Anders walked in the Fade for some time, until they reached a big closed wooden door, decorated with some ancient symbols.

"Go inside, Anders. The Maker is expecting you!" said Justice.

Anders opened the door and stepped inside. It was a huge, almost endless room, without windows or other doors. The room was empty, except for a round, shining energy form located near the entrance.

"Hello … Maker!" said a surprised Anders looking at the glowing energy.

"Hello, Anders!" answered the entity with a loud voice, followed by an echo. The voice had a neutral tone, neither male or female.

Anders looked curiously at the entity in front of him, trying hard to see its form. But he was disappointed that the energy had no features to see.

"So, you're the Maker!" , said Anders raising an eyebrow,"Where is Andraste?"

The entity laughed. "You haven't changed a bit, Anders!" said the entity giggling.

"Well, I've seen the statues … I wanted to see the original too … just to make sure that they match!" said Anders smiling.

The entity laughed again. "Anders, _that_ is not the reason I've called you here!"

"Well, can't blame me for trying!", said Anders smirking ,"So what's the real reason you've summoned me here, Maker?"

"I wanted to tell you that you will return into the mortals world to your family and live happily ever after with your wife and daughter," said the entity.

"Wow, thanks Maker!" said Anders smiling happily.

"Don't mention it, Anders! I owed you one!" said the entity.

"Really? How come?" asked Anders raising an eyebrow.

"That's … another story … just take my word for granted!" said the entity.

"Very well, Maker! As you wish!" answered Anders, then smiled wickedly and said "Maker, can I ask you something? Are you really a 'She'?"

The entity laughed. "No, Anders, I'm neither a 'He' or a 'She'! I can take any form I want!" said the entity.

"Then can you take Andraste's form for a minute?" said Anders smiling wickedly.

"No, Anders! And I think it's time for you to get back, they are waiting for you to wake up!" said the Maker. Then the globe of energy exploded, lighting the entire room as Anders felt like he was being dragged somewhere. He couldn't see a thing, only the pure shining white light that overwhelmed his vision.

"~~~~~~~~~~~~~~"

The woman was running fast through the castle's hallway, holding a sword in her right hand. Behind her, a warrior wearing heavy armor was following her, hardly managing to keep pace with her.

'_Pain, deep pain. Worry. She's afraid that he's dead. Despair. She loves him. Pain again. Hope. Pure hope. She must be praying now, I should pray too. Maker, please Maker, don't let him die!' _thought Alistair while he was following Elissa on the way to the library. They were very close to the library, when they were stopped by a group of royal guards standing in front of the entrance.

"My king!" said one of the royal guards bowing.

"What happened?" asked Alistair breathing heavily.

"The Tevinter mage … he tried to escape. Something strange happened … the rift sealed itself from inside! The mage tried to take advantage of this distraction; he attacked us and ran away! Some men are following him right now!" said the guard.

"And Anders; what about him?" asked Elissa.

The guard sighed____deeply and said "My lady … he's … unconscious … like in a deep sleep!"

Elissa dropped the sword on the ground, quickly pushed the guard out of her way, and ran into the library. As soon as she entered, she saw Anders's body laid on a couch. She ran to him and checked his heart beat. She listened to his chest for a few moments and __heard some weak heart beats. She closed her eyes and screamed his name … suddenly, he slowly opened his eyes and smiled at her. She smiled back and bent over him, kissing him slowly.

Alistair followed her inside and saw Elissa and Anders kissing slowly. He swallowed hard, then turned and left the room. He immediately felt an overwhelming feeling of happiness and love.'_She's happy! She loves him! She deserves to be happy!_' thought the king, trying hard to hold back his feelings of jealousy and sorrow. Then he smiled, as her happiness was running through his body now, making him forget about his own emotions … and he felt genuinely happy too.

Anders took Elissa into his arms, held her closer and ran his hands through her hair.

"My darling, I was so afraid that you might have died!" she said after she ended their passionate kiss, hardly holding back the tears.

"Hey, I'm alright now! The Maker saved me!" said Anders happily touching her face slowly.

Elissa raised an eyebrow suspiciously."Really?The Maker?"

"Yeah, the Maker Himself! Or Herself? Did you know 'He' is also a 'She'?" said Anders.

Elissa laughed. "You must have hit your head or something! Everybody knows the Maker is a 'He'! ", she said smiling , "It's written in the 'Chant of Light!'"

"Well, I've seen Her or … Him! Whatever!" said Anders very serious.

Elissa smiled and examined closer Anders's head, searching for a wound "You must have a wound there, somewhere! Let me check!"

"No, I'm fine! Really! How are you?" said Anders.

"I'm fine, too," said Elissa examining Anders for wounds.

"Where is Ela? Is she alright?" said Anders worried.

"She's fine, she's with Leliana and Duncan," said Elissa.

"I was so scared that something wrong might have happened!" said Anders holding Elissa closer to him.

"Yes, me too!" she said putting her head on his chest, listening to his heart beat, feeling so happy that he was alive. He ran his hands through her hair, held her closer and kissed her forehead.

And this is how Zevran found them, as soon as he returned into the library, after he had chased and killed the Tevinter mage: Anders was holding Elissa close to his chest and they were both smiling happily. Alistair was standing outside the library, leaning against a wall, his face all full of happiness. Zevran looked suspiciously at the happy king … he could not understand the reason for the look on his face.

"Are you alright, Alistair?" asked Zevran doubting the king's sanity.

"Yes, I'm fine, Zev, thanks for your help!" said Alistair smiling.

"Are you sure you're alright?" asked Zevran suspiciously, studying the king for injuries. He was afraid the king might have been poisoned, but could not think of anything that could produce his overt happiness. There were some herbs he used to take to extend his pleasure, but no, this could not be the case here.

Alistair saw Zevran staring at him, suspiciously then nodded and said, "I'm alright, Zev!"

"You look drugged, my friend. Did you drink or eat something … suspicious?" said Zevran, not giving up.

"No, I'm not drugged, Zev! I'm just happy!" said Alistair smiling happily.

"Oh, you're definitely happy, my friend! But I don't understand why!" said Zevran staring at Alistair.

"I'm happy because Elissa is happy … Anders is alive," said Alistair smiling.

"You're really so happy because of _that_?" said Zevran frowning at Alistair, not understanding how that could make him so happy.

No, Zevran could not understand … nobody but Alistair could, but he also did not know the reason for his strange connection between him and Elissa.

After a few moments, Leliana and the children arrived. Ela ran to her father, who took her into his arms and kissed her joyfully. Then Fergus appeared, his face full of disgust and sadness, carrying Anora's journals in his hands.

The king ordered his men to burn Anora's castle down. He left for Denerim, together with Duncan and his guards, while Elissa, Anders and Ela left for Vigil's Keep together with Leliana and Fergus.

"~~~~~~~~~~~~~~"


	2. Forbidden Love

_Many thanks to **Zeeji**, my Beta Reader, for her kindness and her hard work! _

**Chapter 19 : Forbidden Love**

_"Did my heart love till now? Forswear it, sight!_

_For I ne'er saw true beauty till this night."_

_William Shakespeare, Romeo and Juliet, 1.5_

It was almost midnight at Vigil's Keep. A full moon was lighting the stone walled fortress. All looked quiet and peaceful, and everybody seemed to be sleeping, except for a few guards, who__were patrolling in front of the huge closed iron gate. Suddenly, the guards stopped and closed their eyes slowly. They all stood there, sleeping deeply, without any movement. Then, a young, beautiful girl appeared from a corner of the keep's yard, followed by a brown war hound with black spots. The girl was around twenty four, with long curly blond hair hanging__down to her waist. She had beautiful green eyes and delicate facial features. A loose mage robe hid __her perfectly curved body. It was Ela Cousland, the most beautiful girl in Amaranthine, some might say in all of Ferelden! Many men had tried to court her and asked her parents for her hand; none of them had succeeded because her heart was already given to someone else.

"Don't worry, Spotty! They will sleep for an hour and won't remember a thing this time! I've improved my sleep spell!" whispered Ela to the to the war hound next to her .

The dog just looked her into the eyes, and shook its head a little, like it just tried to nod to her.

"Now let's do that ice wall climbing trick I've learned from father!" said Ela raising her hands in the air.

The dog made a small whimper, looking at its master with fear in its eyes.

"I know you don't like it, girl, but we cannot open the gate! We'll make too much noise!" whispered Ela, then she cast an ice spell in the direction of one of the fortress's stone walls. A staircase leading above the stone wall started to shape out of ice.

Then Ela climbed on the ice staircase carefully, not to slide on it. Spotty followed her quickly and soon they were both standing on top of the stone wall.

"Good, we're up! Now let's melt the staircase and then climb down!" whispered Ela to Spotty, while she touched the ice staircase. A small fire, that just came out of her hands, melted the ice staircase, leaving a big slop in the fortress's yard.

Then she raised her hands in the air again and cast another __ice spell. A giant slide just formed out of ice.

The dog whimpered, staring at its master with fear in its eyes.

"Oh, don't be such a baby! I'll go first, then you'll follow me! Don't worry, I'll catch you this time!" whispered Ela, as she__quickly glided on the giant slide, getting down from the fortress walls.

The dog whimpered again, but then it glided down too, into Ela's arms. They both fell on the grass, Ela holding Spotty in her arms.

"Maker, Spotty! You're so heavy! I must stop feeding you all these mabari crunches!" said Ela, getting up from the grass and arranging her robe.

Spotty whimpered at the thought of mabari crunches, then it started to look sadly at Ela, whimpering again, making that irresistible sad puppy face.

"Oh, alright, I guess you deserve one now, for good behavior, but you're on diet starting from tomorrow, girl!" said Ela taking a mabari crunch out of her pocket and throwing it to Spotty.

Spotty wagged its tail happily, as she caught the crunch in its mouth, devouring it quickly.

Ela smiled, looking at the happy mabari in front of her,__and then quickly melted the giant ice slide.

"Let's go quickly! The note said that he'll be there, at our secret hiding place by midnight!" said Ela to Spotty.

They both ran quickly into the forest.

After an hour of running, Ela and Spotty finally reached a small clearing near a river. They both stopped running and sat on the grass, hardly breathing.

"I guess he's late too!" she said after she recovered her breath "Oh, Spotty, I hope he's coming!", she said sadly, then sighed deeply,"I miss him so much!"

The dog whimpered and looked sadly at Ela.

"Yes, Spotty, I know you miss him too!" she said smiling and patting the dog.

They sat there on the grass for a few minutes, both sad and melancholic. But suddenly they heard a noise. It was a horse trap. They both jumped off from the grass and Spotty started to bark happily.

"It's him, Spotty, isn't it?" said Ela happily watching her dog as it leaped from joy.

A black horse was approaching them in a hurry. A young man, wearing a black cloak, was riding on the horse.

"Duncan!" yelled Ela as she ran to the man on the horse.

The man stopped the horse and quickly dismounted, then he removed his cloak. The man looked around twenty five, with short blond hair and golden brown eyes.

Prince Duncan was a very handsome man; people said that he resembled his father a lot. Every young noble woman from Ferelden was dreaming about becoming his lover, but the prince's heart was already given to Ela, the Warden. Because she was a mage, the Chantry had forbidden her from bearing the title of a noble, and Duncan was not permitted to marry her.

"Ela!" said Duncan taking the young woman into his arms.

"I've missed you so much, Duncan!" said Ela touching his face slowly.

"I've missed you too, my love!" whispered Duncan as he searched her lips with his, while his hands held__ Ela closer to him.

Spotty waged its tail happily, while the two lovers kissed slowly. Then the dog made a deep whimper, pitching its head to the right a little.

"Yeah ... I've missed you too, Spotty!" said Duncan after he ended the kiss with Ela. He then bent to the dog and patted Spotty gently on its head.

Spotty had been Duncan's birthday gift to Ela__almost four years ago. Duncan and Ela had been very good childhood friends; they had met occasionally at different royal celebrations and official events. But it was only at Ela's twentieth birthday party that they had both realized it: their friendship had turned into something else, into love… pure, innocent, young love. They had been meeting secretly for the last four years, since their parents had strictly forbidden them to see each other. He was a prince, he had a duty to his country: to marry a noble woman and continue the Theirin bloodline. She was a Warden mage, born with the taint in her blood, doomed to die young due to the curse in her veins. Both their parents had said that their love was impossible, had argued with their children to stop seeing each other.

Duncan and Ela lay slowly on the grass. She cuddled to his chest and listened to his heartbeats. He wrapped his arms around her, gently caressing her head, burrowing his head in her hair, smelling her sweet scent.

"I love you, Ela!" whispered Duncan while he was playing with her blond curly hair.

"I love you too, Duncan!" said Ela raising her head and looking into his shining golden brown eyes, full of love.

He smiled, staring at her beautiful face, lit by the full moon, then touched her lips and kissed her slowly.

"I'm so glad that you came! I have some good news!" she said happily after they ended the long passionate kiss.

"I wish I could have come sooner! Father almost locked me away this time! I was lucky that he's in Orlais now and Teagan was kind enough to help me escape!", said Duncan smiling, "What's the good news?"

"We've almost done it, father and I! We found a cure for the taint!" said Ela smiling happily.

"Really! Wow, that's wonderful news!" said Duncan smiling back.

"Yes, it will be ready soon!" said Ela.

"Oh, I'm so happy, love!" said Duncan kissing her again.

Over the last twenty years Anders had spent all his time studying the taint. At first, he had only helped Avenus with his research, but after Avenus's death almost ten years ago, Anders had continued his work helped by Ela.

"We still need more time for some tests, but it's almost done!" said Ela after their kiss.

"Then it's time! We'll leave as soon as you're cured!" said Duncan with full determination in his voice.

"No, Duncan! We cannot run away like that! I'm a mage, they have my phylactery!" said Ela worried.

"I'll find a way to destroy it, don't worry about it!" said Duncan very seriously.

"What about your father and my parents? We'll destroy them if we just disappear!" said Ela worriedly.

"You worry too much, my love! I love you and I want us to marry!" said Duncan touching her face gently.

"I love you too, Duncan, but we both know that is not possible! You're the heir to the throne and I'm a mage," she said smiling sadly.

"We'll run away together somewhere, far, far away from Ferelden! Some place where nobody would know that I'm a prince or even care that you're a mage!" said Duncan, his eyes full of hope.

"You know I would like that, Duncan … but think carefully about it … _they_ will find us … your father will never give up on you! You're his only son! And if he doesn't find us, my mother and father will definitely keep searching for us through all of Thedas!" said Ela sadly.

Duncan sighed deeply. "He wants to me to marry soon … with a noble from Orlais. He wants me to end up in an arranged marriage just like _he_ did!" said Duncan angrily. "He never loved my mother, he had been forced to marry her… he's so cold and calculated now… like he's lost his heart!"

Ela sighted. "I know, Duncan. I've heard his story… do you think that he still loves _her_?" asked Ela raising an eyebrow.

"I've found him crying hard in his office a few times ... with a small golden ring in his hand … I think it's the ring he wanted to give to your mother, twenty seven years ago!" said Duncan sadly.

Ela sighted deeply. "That's so … sad!" she said, hardly holding back the tears.

"Yes, I know!" said Duncan sadly.

"I've found her crying hard in her office a few times… with a dried red rose in her hand. I think _he_ gave her the rose… a__long time ago. Father never buys her roses, he says roses make her sad… I think she still loves _him_!", said Ela, then sighed deeply, "She loves my father too, but I believe that what my mother and your father had experienced was something special, unforgettable!"

"Then _he_ should be the one to understand me best, yet he locks me in the Palace, argues with me to marry out of duty!" yelled Duncan, his voice full of anger.

"You're a prince, Duncan … you cannot change this, love!" said Ela in a soft voice, trying to calm Duncan down.

"He never remarried! He's been unhappy for twenty seven years! But, sometimes, he smiles suddenly, like he had just experienced a great joy! I don't know what's wrong with him!" said Duncan confused.

"My mother is very strange too … one minute she's acting normally, then she's suddenly all sad! She cannot explain it! Father said it's not a disease!" said Ela confused too.

Ela cuddled to his chest again. He hold her closer, kissing her forehead, playing with her curly hair.

"It's so good to be in your arms again, love!" she whispered holding him closer.

"I won't give up on you, my love! I'll fight for this, Ela!" whispered Duncan, kissing her forehead again.

"I could be your mistress … I don't care!" she whispered sadly.

"No! Never! I want you to be my wife!" yelled Duncan angrily.

Ela raised her head, her eyes full of tears and whispered, "You know that's not possible, love!"

Duncan wiped her tears with his hand and said, "I'll find a way! Trust me, Ela!"

She smiled sadly, "I trust you, Duncan! I'm yours forever!"

"I love you, always!" said Duncan and kissed her gently.

The two lovers spent the rest of the night in the clearing, near the river, under the shining full moon, just holding each other close, kissing, whispering sweet words, confessing their love for each other. And when the dawn came, they kissed one last time, then parted their ways: she returned to the Vigil's Keep with Spotty, while he put on his black cloak, got up on his black horse and left for Denerim.


	3. The Perfect Gift

_Many thanks to my Beta Reader **Zeeji**!_

**Chapter 20: The Perfect Gift**

"_Like a fish, one should look for holes in the net." -__Ancient Samoan saying on freedom_

It was already dawn at Vigil's Keep and the first rays of the sun were lighting Anders's big laboratory. There were opened books scattered all over the room. A huge wooden wardrobe filled with labeled flasks of different colored liquids stood in the rightmost corner. Thirty cages were sitting on the floor, right under the huge shelf. Each cage had a wolf inside; half held diseased, tainted, blight wolves, the rest held healthy, normal animals.

On the left, there was a big desk, full of books and papers. A blond mage, with a ponytail and a few white locks was sitting on the desk writing something on a piece of paper:

_'__Experiment No. 3245_

_The formula__ seems __stable now, the blight wolves _have_ become normal again. There is no trace of the taint in their bodies. There are no side effects. __The potion is safe enough now to be tested on humans.'_

For the last twenty four years, Anders had been working on finding a cure for the taint. The taint… the poison running through his veins, the curse upon his family! His daughter was doomed to die young, just because she had been born a Warden, his wife had only two or three years left until her Calling and he had only four more years… it was not fair! All he ever wanted was **freedom**, yet he ended up in another cage at the moment he had been made a Warden. He did not have a say in the matter; there had been no other choice for him, except for being locked in the Mage Tower again or worse… death.

Anders loved Elissa and Ela. They had been a happy family for twenty five years… well, as normal as a Warden family can be, especially when two of them were mages and the other one a templar! Anders was happy, he never would have thought that he would ever be a happily married man, yet here he was! But the taint was about to take that happiness away from them! Yes, life is not fair, life is just… life!

At first, Anders had only helped Avernus with his research. Ten years ago, after Avernus' death, he continued the old mage's work with the assistance of Ela. Avernus had been right: Ela's blood was the key for finding the cure. Her inbred resistance to the taint helped them to understand the secret process of the Grey Warden Joining with the help of some very rare items. Elissa searched all of Thedas for the key plants and minerals, as well as researching through old Tevinter books and scrolls The king had financed the entire project, since he was a Warden himself. Alistair had only two more years until his Calling. He had visited the keep often, interested in their progress and results. But this was not the only reason the king had visited them once a month. He had come to see _her_, Elissa! Anders had seen the way Alistair looked at Elissa, at _his_ wife! The king still loved her and Anders just knew _it_… and was very jealous about it! And _she_… she had promised the king that she would go with him into the Deep Roads when his Calling would come! How could she? Anders and Elissa, had argued so much that day… how could she do that? Elissa had said that she and the king had been made Wardens almost at the same time, at only six months difference, and also that she owed the king for freeing Ela from the Chantry, but Anders knew the real reason: she still loved _him_… the king! Anders felt so betrayed by her… she wanted to leave him behind, "to take care of Ela", she had said as she had tried hard to persuade him to understand _her_ decision!

Anders never told Elissa about Alistair's ability to sense her feelings. He had had a hunch; when Elissa had her periods of sadness he suspected that somehow she might sense Alistair's too. The demons were right, they had a connection. Elissa and Alistair were still tied to each other somehow. Anders never told Elissa about this! It was his only secret, the only thing that he had kept hidden from her after twenty five years of marriage. His jealousy did not let him do it!

The laboratory's door opened, suddenly, and a young woman wearing a mage robe came in.

"Ela! You're here! Good!" said Anders, turning to look at the young woman that just entered the laboratory. He saw her tired, red eyes and said, "Busy night?" Anders raised an eyebrow. "He was here again, wasn't he?"

"What? NO!" said Ela, trying to lie to her father.

"Hey! Don't lie to me! I've seen the big slop in the yard and it hasn't even rained! The guards were wondering about it!" said Anders.

"I … I'm sorry! Mother will be upset again!" she said frowning.

"I told them that I experimented with ice and fire last night." said Anders smiling.

"Oh, thanks Dad!" she said smiling back.

"Don't mention it, dear! ", said Anders smiling, "Next time, just cast a small fireball to dry the water from the yard!" he winked at Ela.

"Riiiight! Thanks, Dad!" said Ela smiling sadly, then she sat slowly on a chair next to Anders.

Anders looked at the sad young woman next to him, then sighed deeply "Look, Ela, your mother is just trying to protect you! He's a prince, you're a mage… bad combination!" said Anders sadly.

"Yeah… don't I know it!" said Ela sighing again.

"Our magic is more a curse than a gift! We are doomed to bear this curse!" said Anders after he sighed deeply. "The others, those who are normal, fear what they don't understand. I want to say that, just because we have the power to fry their asses, this doesn't mean we're _actually_ going to do it, right?" he said winking at Ela.

"Riiight!", said Ela smiling, "But I cannot change the fact that Duncan and I love each other!" she said sadly.

Anders sighed again. "I never knew what love is until I met your mother!" he said. "Magic is power, but love can make even the Maker himself kneel!"

Anders got up from his desk and went to the huge potion shelf. He picked a small flask, containing a red liquid.

"It's good that you're here, Ela! I need your help!" he said as he approached Ela.

"Sure, Dad! What do I have to do?" said Ela as she got up from the chair.

"I think it's ready… _the_ _potion_! All the tested wolves are perfectly healthy, there are no side effects!" he said smiling.

"That's great news, Dad!" said Ela.

"There is one more thing I need to do now!" said Anders as he raised the flask in the air and opened it. "If something goes wrong, you know what to do! It's all written in my journals!" he said and then he drank all the liquid from the flask.

"NO! DAD!" yelled Ela, scared.

Anders coughed hard, then smiled at Ela and said "Blah! It has a very nasty taste!". He started to tremble a little.

Ela got closer to her father and put an arm around him "Are you alright, Dad?"she said worried.

"I'm fine! Quickly, scan me to see if the taint is still in me!" said Anders, hardly speaking.

Ela raised her hands in the air and started to cast a body scan spell on her father. After a few minutes, she stopped, her face full of surprise "It's… It's gone! It's gone, Dad!" she said surprised.

"Good! Now use your Warden skills to sense me!" said Anders, recovering from the potion's shock.

Ela closed her eyes and tried to sense the nearby Wardens, but she could not sense her father anymore.

"I cannot sense you, Dad!" she said surprised.

"That's because I'm not a Warden anymore!", said Anders smiling, "I'm free, at last!" he screamed happily.

They both hugged themselves happily.

"Now, let's go tell your mother, Ela!" said Anders,"Today is our silver wedding anniversary and I have just the perfect gift for her!" he said winking at Ela.

"~~~~~~~~~~~~~~"

Elissa was sitting at her desk in the Warden Commander office. She was feeling very sad again, a strange feeling that she just could not control. She did not know the meaning of all these strange feelings she had been experienced over the last twenty years! She closed her eyes and tried to control the feeling, to find the reason for it! Then, suddenly, she remembered _the rose_, Alistair's rose! She could not explain it how, but she just felt that she needed to look at the rose again, so she took a book out, from a shelf behind her desk, and picked a dried red rose in her hand. She looked at the rose and started to cry, as she had just been overwhelmed by old and painful memories.

She heard a knock on the door; she quickly hid the rose in the book and wiped away the tears.

"Come in!" she said, as she tried hard to control herself.

Ela and Anders came in, both of them looking very happy and holding hands.

"Tell us, mother, how many Wardens are in this room right now?" said Ela very happily.

Elissa raised an eyebrow and said "What's with this stupid question, dear?"

"Oh, just play our game! Use your Warden skills, humor us!" said Anders smiling.

Elissa looked suspiciously at the two happy people in front of her, then she used her Warden skills. There was only one Warden in front of her: Ela. She opened her mouth, but couldn't say anything … she was very surprised, speechless.

"What's the matter, Commander? Are you getting old? Are you losing your skills?" joked Anders.

"Well, I still master one important skill: how to kick your ass, Anders!" she answered in the same tone.

"Ouch, still the tough one, aren't you? That's why I love you, my dear!" said Anders, smiling.

"So, what's this all about? Why can't I sense you?" She stopped suddenly, then she frowned. " Wait … you've tested _it_… on _you_!" she said scared.

"Still the most cunning one, too!" said Anders smiling.

"What about the risks… the possible side effects?" she said horrified.

"There are none… I've tested it for so long on blight wolves, I'm sure it's alright!" said Anders, very confident in his work.

"Wow, you really made it, didn't you?" she said smiling.

"I guess we did!" said Anders.

"I want to test it too! Before you give the cure to Ela! Our family first, then the king! If there are indeed no side effects, then Ela can drink it too!" she said.

"I thought you might want it," he said as he handled Elissa a small silver box. "This is my silver wedding anniversary gift to you!"

She opened the box; there was a small flask inside, containing a red liquid- the cure for the taint. It was the most extraordinary gift ever; it was the gift of freedom and life!

"This… this is the best gift ever!" she said almost crying from emotion.

"We're free at last… free from the taint!" said Anders.

"I… I only bought you this fancy silver earring with small stones! It looks such a stupid gift now!" she said as she gave him a small silver box that she had just taken out of her pocket.

"Are you kidding? I love it!" he said as he opened the box and looked at the silver earring.

"~~~~~~~~~~~~~~"

It was already evening and Ela was going to her room to rest after her parents' silver wedding celebration. There were two young girls standing in the keep's hallway; two servants who were chatting with each other. Ela accidentally heard their conversation, as she was walking towards her room.

"Have you heard the last gossip? The king is back from Orlais and he's brought a beautiful princess with him! They say she's going to marry Prince Duncan!" said one of the servants.

"A princess? From Orlais? Really?" asked the other servant.

"Yes, they say she's very beautiful and that the prince is already engaged to her!" said the other girl.

"Wow! Already engaged, you say?" said the servant from the right.

"There's going to be a royal wedding soon!" said the servant from the left.

"How wonderful! I wish I could go to Denerim!" said the other servant.

Ela's heart suddenly stopped… she froze with horror and pain. Then she ran into her chamber, where Spotty was already expecting her, and cried all the night, holding the dog in her arms.

"~~~~~~~~~~~~~~"

_**N/A**__: Next chapter, Duncan versus Alistair confrontation in Denerim! Do you think the king will listen to his heart this time?_


	4. Love or Duty

_Sorry for updating so late, but this chapter is a bit more polished than usual(I've tried to improve my writing style a little) and it took more time to write. It is already checked by my Beta Reader, **Zeeji**, so there are no more grammar and spelling errors._

_Many many thanks again to **Zeeji**! She's my 'grammar and spelling error correction' angel! You rule, **Zeeji**!_

_Many thanks to __**Aya001**__ for her many reviews and to all of you who read this story!_

_I made a confusion when I added this chapter to the story: if you received an email saying that there is a new chapter for 'Tied by Destiny', I'm sorry, it was a mistake, it was in fact this chapter, misplaced._

**Chapter 21: Love or Duty**

"_And now here is my secret, a very simple secret; it is only with the heart that one can see rightly, what is __essential__ is invisible to the eye."- Antoine de Saint-Exupery_

The king was returning from Orlais in a luxurious horse-drawn carriage surrounded by thirty well armed royal guards. The Empress of Orlais was sitting right beside him, together with her younger daughter, Clarissa. Another alliance had been signed between Ferelden and Orlais, renewing the older one. The compromise had been the same: an arranged marriage, this time between Prince Duncan and Princess Clarissa. Alistair had tried hard to avoid that; he and the Empress had argued for days, but it was useless. The Empress had been very harsh and determined. There were only two options: war with Orlais or the arranged royal wedding. This time the price was higher than ever: Duncan's happiness. History seemed to repeat itself!

It was already dawn when the king's party reached Denerim. Alistair was restless and extremely sad. He did not take Duncan with him to Orlais; he had wanted to protect him, to avoid sacrificing him for the good of the nation. And now he had to tell his son that he was already engaged to Clarissa. Duncan didn't even have the chance to choose his future wife, he never met Clarissa before. The king sighed deeply. Today he had to face his son and tell him that his future was already planned, his wife already chosen. Alistair was very upset, he knew that he didn't have much time; his Calling was near. He had no more than two years to teach Duncan all he knew, in order to to leave Ferelden in Duncan's hands. The alliance with Orlais had been the most important thing of all. A war would destroy Ferelden.

Teagan, Alistair's Chancellor, was awakened by a heavy knocking.

"My Lord, the King is here!" yelled a servant from outside.

Teagan flinched and got up from the bed quickly. Alistair was supposed to return from Orlais in a week, yet he was already here. Had he finished his business in Orlais early? Teagan started to dress himself quickly. This early return was bad, very bad! Duncan was not there, at the Palace. Teagan had felt pity for the young love struck man and had let him go to Vigil's Keep to see his beloved. The Prince was supposed to return from Vigil's Keep that day, at midnight. The king would be very upset about this, Teagan was sure of it. The Chancellor tried to focus and find a solution. He needed something: a distraction, a small lie, something to make the king believe that the Prince was still there, in the Palace, locked in his chambers, as usual.

Teagan left his bedroom in a hurry. He found the right person for this job: the king's healer, a young man very skilled in healing techniques.

"Come with me!" he said to the mage. The mage followed Teagan and the Chancellor explained the situation to him as they headed for the estate's exit. Too late, the king was already there, followed by the Empress and her younger daughter.

"Ah, Teagan! Her Imperial Highness, the Empress of Orlais and Princess Clarissa will be our honored guests for a week. Please make all the preparations for their accommodation in the Palace." said Alistair as soon as he saw Teagan approaching them.

Teagan bowed and greeted the Empress and her daughter politely in Orlesian, then turned to look at Alistair.

"Of course, your Majesty," said Teagan in a soft voice.

Teagan started to give orders to the servants, then he showed the Empress and the Princess the way to their chambers. As soon as he left the Empress, he remembered something and started to run as fast as he could towards the Prince's chambers. He found the mage on his way and ordered him to follow.

When Teagan and the mage reached Duncan's chambers, Alistair was already there, in front of the door.

"The Prince is sick!" said Teagan as he jumped in front of Alistair and blocked the way to Duncan's chambers.

"What's wrong with him?" asked Alistair looking suspiciously at Teagan.

"Chicken pox!" said Teagan after he tried hard to remember a name of a sickness.

"But Duncan already had chicken pox when he was ten!" said Alistair frowning.

Teagan made a confused face. "It's back", lied Teagan. He looked desperately at the mage, his eyes crying for help.

"It's not poss-"said the king.

"It's a new, rare form of Antivan chicken pox, your Majesty", said the mage, interrupting the king, "It's called 'Varicella'".

_'Good thing I had that __Antivan__ girlfriend and she taught me some interesting things! And a bit of __Antivan__ too!'_ thought the mage smiling, as he remembered his Antivian girlfriend.

Alistair frowned again. "Vari-what? Is he badly ill?" asked Alistair.

'_Damn these mages and their strange words!_' thought the king looking suspiciously at the mage in front of him.

"Varicella!" said the mage in a perfect Antivan accent. "He's sleeping now, I gave him a potion that will cure him, but he will sleep all day. His condition will surely improve by tomorrow morning, your Majesty." said the mage in a very concerned voice.

Teagan nodded and looked desperately at Alistair.

Alistair raised an eyebrow; he felt that something was not quite right there, but he trusted Teagan, his old friend. Teagan had never disappointed him before. And the king was too tired to think clearly at that moment. The trip from Orlais had been long; he felt exhausted.

"Riiiight, just let me know when he wakes up!" said Alistair worried.

"Of course, your Majesty!" said the mage as he bowed to the king.

"I'll go rest for a few hours." said Alistair and walked slowly towards his bedroom.

"~~~~~~~~~~~~~~"

It was already midnight and Alistair was sitting in his office thinking hard. He had spent all the day discussing with the Empress about the following engagement party that would take place soon. He had to excuse his son's absence, as the Prince was still sleeping in his chambers. Alistair got up from his desk and opened the window to let the fresh air clear his mind. He looked on the window and saw something strange moving: a cloaked man on a black horse had just entered the Palace's yard. The man quickly dismounted the horse and then took off his cloak. The king immediately recognized the young man.

"Duncan!" said the king, his face full of surprise. His supposedly sick son had just arrived at the Palace, in the middle of the night! The king immediately understood the whole situation: Teagan had lied to him, covering up Duncan's absence. Alistair already had a hunch where the young man had been. He knew about his son's love for Ela and their secret meetings in the forest near Vigil's Keep. He suddenly felt dizzy; he closed his eyes and sighed deeply. He never wanted this to happen, yet his son was in love with Elissa's daughter, a tainted mage, an impossible love. He had wanted to protect him from this, to make him understand that he had a duty; kings don't marry for love!

"Damn!" said Alistair and ran to Duncan's chambers. He found Teagan talking with Duncan in the hallway. They both looked surprised to see the king approaching them. Duncan frowned and ran into his chambers.

"Duncan!" yelled Alistair.

"Alistair..." whispered Teagan, as he looked guiltily at the floor.

"How could you, Teagan? How could you lie to me like that? I trusted you!" yelled Alistair.

"He's just a young man in love!" said Teagan looking into Alistair's eyes.

"You know well what's at stake here! We cannot risk a war with Orlais, Teagan!" said Alistair looking angrily at his friend.

"This is not a good solution, my friend! It might be the most rational one, but it is not the best! _You_ should know better, Alistair!" said Teagan calmly.

"There is no other solution than WAR, Teagan!" yelled Alistair angrily.

"Maybe war is not such a bad solution, Alistair! Just think about what's more important here!" said Teagan calmly.

"How can you say _that_, Teagan! War is not an option!"yelled Alistair.

"Your son is more important, Alistair!" replied Teagan.

Alistair sighed deeply. "You disappointed me so badly, my friend! I don't know if you should remain my Chancellor anymore!" said Alistair and walked away from Teagan.

"Actually, I would like to resign from my appointment as your Chancellor, Alistair!" said Teagan very boldly.

Alistair looked at his old friend and saw the determination from his eyes. "Why?" asked Alistair.

"You've become so cold and calculated, Alistair. I don't recognize you anymore! I won't help you destroy your son's future! " said Teagan in a very determinate voice.

Alistair closed his eyes for a moment, thinking hard. "So be it then, Teagan! I release you from your duties as my Chancellor starting from _now_!" yelled the king as he opened the door to Duncan's chambers.

Duncan was expecting his father inside his chambers. He looked tired and very upset.

"Hello, Father!" said Duncan angrily.

"Duncan! How could you run away like that, alone, unguarded!" yelled Alistair.

"How could you do this to me, Father?" whispered Duncan in a very harsh tone.

"Duncan, there is no other option, my son!" said the king calmly.

"I won't marry her... this Orlesian princess you brought with you, Father!" yelled Duncan.

"You'll have to do it, Duncan! It's your duty to Ferelden!" said Alistair in a very cold tone.

"No! I love another woman, Father! Listen to yourself, how can you do this to me?" asked Duncan.

"Love has nothing to do with this, son," said Alistair. "Kings don't marry for love, Duncan!"

"That's what you keep telling yourself; that's your pathetic excuse for your mistake!" yelled Duncan.

"It's not an excuse, it's a _fact_, Duncan!" said Alistair in a very cold voice.

"I know you still love _her_, Father! I know about the ring… hidden in your desk. You wanted to give _her _that ring… twenty seven years ago, didn't you?" said Duncan in a warmer voice now.

"You know NOTHING, Duncan! You're young and restless… you think you can change the world all by yourself!" yelled Alistair. "Life is not simple, Duncan! You have a duty to your country!"

"I don't want to be prince… or king, Father!" said Duncan. " All I want is to marry the woman I love… please, Father! Of all the people in this world, _you_ should be the one to understand me best!"

"Duncan... you _are_ a prince, born like this… it's your destiny, you cannot change _this_! And you shall be king soon, my son! I only have two more years until my Calling… we've already discussed this," said the king in a warmer voice now.

"Ela and her father found a cure for the taint! You won't have to die, Father!" said Duncan with hope in his voice.

"That's wonderful news, Duncan, but you will still be king, sooner or later!" said the king in a warm voice.

"Please, Father, don't make me live the same mistake you did! You said that I should listen to my _heart_… please, Father! My heart is yelling at me to _fight_ for my love! I don't want to give up… Father… _never_!" said Duncan in a soft voice, begging the king to understand him.

"I'm sorry, Duncan! You cannot run away from your duty!" said Alistair in a harsh tone.

"I won't do it! I won't marry her!" yelled Duncan and he ran away from his chambers.

"Duncan!" yelled Alistair, but the young man had already left the room.

Alistair felt dizzy; his head was too heavy, his world was falling apart. He knew that it would not be easy to persuade the young prince to fulfill his duty, but he hoped that Duncan would eventually understand. He left the Prince's chambers and walked slowly to his office. He opened a drawer and took a small red box out of it. He opened the box and picked up a small golden ring with an emerald stone. Alistair sat slowly at his desk, holding the ring in his hand. He looked closer to the ring; it had some words carved on it, the words he knew so well, the words that hurt so much: _'I love you, always, Elissa.' _It was the ring he had wanted to give to her, his one and only love. Alistair had bought it just after their first night together. He had wanted to marry her, as soon as he had realized how much he loved her. Yet he had never given her that ring. Arl Eamon had persuaded him to change his mind. Because he had listened to the arl, he had made the biggest mistake of his life!

A tear fell from the king's eyes. He felt his heart beating very fast. He just remembered how he had promised himself that he would listen to his heart whenever he would have to make a hard decision. Yet he had ignored his heart so much, he had become so calculated and cold! He had been so wrong! And was about to force his son repeat his mistake.

_'So much passion! He reminds me of myself when I was young. He loves her! So much determination! I've raised him well. My son, my precious gift from the Maker Himself! He deserves to be happy! He should not be sacrificed in the name of politics! He should be happy! He should marry the woman he loves! It's time for things to change in this country! She's a mage, the Chantry says mages cannot hold titles… mages cannot be queens… but aren't mages humans too? The Empress of Orlais threatened us with war. But we did nothing wrong! Does she really want war, or is she bluffing? That sneaky hag! And if she wants war, than she shall have it! Damn the Empress! Damn the Grand Cleric! My son shall be happy! My son's happiness is not for sale! It's priceless! My son shall marry the woman he loves! He wants to fight, he's braver than I was twenty seven years ago… he won't give up on his love! We shall fight together… we shall fight them all: the Empress, the Grand Cleric, the nobles...Dammit! Even the Maker Himself! No, history will not repeat itself, not this time! It's time for Ferelden to change! It's time for a king to finally marry for love, it's time for my son to be happy! And we shall fight them all! We shall swim against the stream__ together!_' thought the king as he just put the ring back in the box and then placed the box in the drawer again.

He got up from his chair and ran out of his office. He asked the servants about his son. Duncan was on the training grounds; he found him fighting a dummy with a sword and a shield.

"Duncan!" said Alistair smiling, as he approached his son.

"Leave me alone, Father! We're done talking!" yelled Duncan, avoiding the king's eyes.

"You were right, son!" yelled Alistair.

Duncan stopped fighting and looked surprised at his father. "I'm sorry? Did you just say that _I_ was right, Father?" he asked, confused.

Alistair smiled and got closer to his son. He placed an arm around his shoulder and said, "Come, Duncan! We have work to do! We need to break a peace treaty with Orlais, then intimidate the Grand Cleric, find the perfect emerald ring for your green-eyed lady and, if we're lucky, we shall leave for Vigil's Keep tomorrow at noon! I've heard there is a beautiful green-eyed young lady, in love with a prince… waiting restlessly for her lover to come. She will be very surprised to find out that you've come to propose to her!"

"Are you serious Father? Will you really risk a war with Orlais for me?" said Duncan surprised, staring at his father.

"Yes, I'm very serious, son… if that sneaky hag wants war, then she'll have it! Damn her manipulation techniques! Damn her twisted interests! Damn her sneaky advisers! Damn the Empress herself!" said Alistair in a very serious voice.

Duncan stared at his father. He looked into his eyes. They were not cold anymore: they were full of love and understanding. "Wow! Thanks, Father!" said Duncan smiling, but then he frowned, "What about the Grand Cleric?"

"Son, you're going to love _that_ part!" said Alistair smiling. "I'll teach you how to intimidate a Grand Cleric!"

Alistair winked at Duncan and then started to laugh. Duncan was speechless. He hugged his father and started to laugh too.

The father and his son left the training grounds together talking, planning something important. They both looked very happy, smiling and even laughing from time to time. The servants looked surprised at them, as the king had argued with his son for many years about love and duty.

But this time love had won the fight!

"~~~~~~~~~~~~~~"


	5. This Means War!

_My eternal gratitude to **Zeeji**, my Beta Reader, for her excellent work and her kindness!_

**Chapter 22: This Means War!**

"_Politics is war without bloodshed, while war is politics with bloodshed." __Mao Zedong _

The Empress of Orlais was sitting in the Landsmeet chamber together with her youngest daughter Clarissa and some nobles, both Orlesian and Ferelden. They were all waiting for the King of Ferelden and his son to arrive. Alistair was supposed to introduce his son, Duncan, to Clarissa and make the final preparations for their engagement. Teagan was also there, sitting on a chair, talking to some Ferelden nobles.

Empress Celine was a tall, slender woman with white hair styled in an Orlesian style bun. Although she was nearly sixty five, her gorgeous blue eyes reflected how beautiful she had been in her youth. She had a proud and intimidating stature worthy of the Empress of Orlais, Empress Celine was known to be a very powerful character; she was extremely intelligent, persuasive, and as hard as stone itself. This was the reason why people referred to her as "The Stony Lady".

Her youngest daughter, Clarissa, was a tall, beautiful woman who was nearly twenty five years old. She greatly resembled her mother, with her beautiful blue eyes. As soon as Alistair and Duncan came into the Landsmeet chamber, the Empress got up from her chair.

"Ah, Prince Duncan, finally!" said the Empress in a harsh tone.

"Your Imperial Highness..." said Duncan as he bowed to the Empress. Then he turned to Clarissa, bowed to her politely and said, "A pleasure to meet you, my lady."

"The pleasure is all mine." said the Princess as she also bowed.

Alistair walked closer to the Empress. He took a deep breath and said, "There is a change of plan we need to inform you about, your Imperial Highness."

The Empress turned her head and looked into the king's eyes coldly. "What change of plan?" she asked harshly.

"There will be no wedding," said Alistair boldly. "Prince Duncan is already promised to somebody else."

Every noble in the room froze, almost as if a bomb had been thrown into the room, at the king's words. The silence held deeply for several moments as the people seemed to have stopped breathing, afraid to make any sort of sound.

"What?" yelled the Empress without flinching, preserving her proud Imperial stature. "You cannot do this! You cannot change your mind like this! We have a deal!"

Alistair did not flinch either. He stood his ground proudly too. "My son has the right to marry who he wants, the woman he loves," said the king in a harsh tone.

The Empress frowned, but did not move at all. "Of course you realize this means WAR!" she yelled.

Alistair remained still. He had anticipated her reaction, he did not want to show any sign of fear. "And what would be the reason for such a harsh reaction, your Imperial Highness?" he said calmly.

The Stony Lady rolled her eyes in disgust. "The reason? You want a reason? You insulted me, the Empress of Orlais and my daughter!" yelled the Empress of Orlais. "Isn't that a good enough reason?"

"And you would bet the lives of your people on this? Is it really worth it?" said Alistair calmly as he stood his ground bravely.

Empress Celine looked angrily at the king in front of her. "Nobody insults the Empress of Orlais and lives!" she yelled again. "You will yield to me! _SOON_! You will be sorry for this!" she threatened. "I offered you a chance to unite our nations and you just threw it away!"

Alistair returned her angry look. "Oh, please, you didn't offer me any other choice!" said Alistair harshly**.** "I don't see any logical reason for this war. Trade had been so good between Ferelden and Orlais for the last twenty six years, both our nations had prospered from this. Why change it now?"

_'Because I want more, because I want to add Ferelden to my Imperium... you fool!' _thought the Empress to herself.

"There had been several attacks on Orlesian tradesmen lately. We have proven that they were performed by Ferelden bandits!" said Empress Celine irritably_**.**_

Alistair raised an eyebrow. _'Weak reason! Let's see... what else do you have in your sack full of lies, you stony bitch!' _he thought.

"They shall be captured and punished, your Imperial Higness!"' said the king of Ferelden, trying to defend himself from her accusations.

The Empress frowned. _'Why is he doing this? Why is he trying to fight me again? Doesn't he know that I'm stronger than him? What does the fool want this time? We had such a perfect deal, a compromise...' _she thought to herself.

She raised her head proudly. "That is not good enough!" she said in a harsh tone, "There are all those Ferelden fanatics that attack Orlesian people whenever they have a chance!"

Alistair smiled sarcastically."There are also fanatic Orlesian people that attack Fereldens too! Maybe we can make a _hostage exchange_ of some sort?" said Alistair in a sarcastic tone.

_'You're a fool! Hostage exchange? I'll crush you like a bug!' _thought the Empress as she raised her eyebrows.

Duncan, Clarissa, Teagan and the nobles were watching the whole show frozen, with fear all over their faces. A noble moved a little and whispered some words to another man close to him: "Is the king insane?". The two sovereigns were fighting each other like two warriors, but without swords and shields, only with words... harsh and intimidating words. It was like a duel to the death and both Ferelden and Orlais faith was at stake.

Clarissa raised her head slowly and looked shyly at Duncan. She just remembered the rumors about the prince: people said that he was in love with a mage. Was he going to marry her, a mage? How bold... but also how lucky of him that his father understood him. Her mother didn't give her any choice! Clarissa couldn't stand up to her stony, determinate mother! The unhappy princess had been dragged into this arranged marriage by force too. Clarissa was in love with a young Chevalier from the Court, the son of a farmer, not even a noble born. She prayed to the Maker to avoid this engagement!

The Empress was looking angrily at the king of Ferelden. "Ferelden is a threat to Orlais!" she smiled wickedly. "That's right! I know about your alliance with Antiva! You want to unite your forces against Orlais! You want to destroy my Imperium!" she said in a harsh tone.

_'Such lies! Keep your Imperium, I don't want any part of it! But you, on the other hand, you want to conquer us all! You greedy tyrant!' _thought Alistair to himself.

Alistair looked at her angrily. "There is no such thing! Only a trade alliance with Antiva. Nobody is planning anything against your Imperium!" he stated.

_'Why are we fighting again? We've already _done _t__his several times... and I won all the previous fights! You're weak, I'm strong! Just surrender and let's proceed with this damned engagement!' _thought the Empress.

"I already told you that I don't believe _that_!" she yelled. "You need to prove your loyalty to me! And there is only one logical option: your son is going to marry my daughter! Either that or WAR!"

_'Oh, you won't get me down with this line again! My son is not for sale!' _thought Alistair.

"That is not an option either! My son's happiness is not up for bargaining!" yelled the king of Ferelden.

_'Dammit! He always fell for this one! What made him change?' _thought Empress Celine.

The Empress raised her head proudly, looking superiority at the king "Then WAR it is..." she stated in a harsh tone.

_'You really want war? Let's just see how honest you are, snake!' _thought Alistair.

Alistair raised his head proudly too. "If you want war, then you shall have it! But I must warn you that you won't conquer us easily! Every woman and man from Ferelden will fight you; they would rather die fighting that be your slaves again!" Alistair smiled sarcastically. "And did I mention that we've ended a Blight and defeated a mighty Archdemon? Don't underestimate us!" He frowned again. "If you want war, we'll fight you to the end! The Dalish are loyal to us, the dwarves too... the Antivans will definitely send us reinforcements. Are you really sure you want this, Empress?"

_'I can't believe he's trying to intimidate ME, the Empress of Orlais! How dare you! I'll destroy you and your country with my little finger!' _thought the Empress.

The Stony Lady smiled sarcastically. "My Chevaliers will crush your pathetic Dalish and dwarves! You think you can defeat my mighty army? You are such a fool!" she yelled in an intimidating tone.

_'Oh, they can definitely try! I won't let you conquer us! NEVER!'_ thought Alistair.

"Tell your General that I'll meet him on the battlefield!" was the king's ultimatum. He turned his back at the Empress and walked away from her.

It was a heavy blow, almost a killing one. The Stony Lady flinched, and then started to tremble. She didn't expect this; something changed inside the king of Ferelden. He had a power in him stronger than her, a will and determination like no one she'd ever met before. He was serious, he _did not _bluff. He would fight to the death. The Empress started to breath heavily. It would be a difficult war, with many casualties on both sides, a heavy bloodshed. Maybe she would eventually win the war, but at what cost? Why did he change his mind? Why did he become so irrational, so foolish? Had he gone mad? He was definitely not bluffing. She just remembered how the Fereldens had freed themselves from the Orlesian occupation. They were very strong and determined fighters; not easy to defeat. She wanted to conquer Ferelden by less aggressive means... by this alliance. The king of Ferelden was not bluffing. But she _was_. She did now want war!

_'I'm losing ... I cannot believe it, but I'm really losing this fight!' _"Wait..." whispered the Empress as she regained her proud stony stature.

_'I knew it! You were bluffing!' _thought Alistair as he stopped and turned to look at the Empress.

_'Damn! Defeat tastes bitter!' _thought the Empress to herself.

"I think a war between Orlais and Ferelden will turn into a real blood bath, a real disaster." said the Empress in a harsh tone.

_'Finally warmed a little you stony bitch!' _ thought the king.

"A real disaster indeed!" said Alistair in a calm tone.

_'He's different. Something made him change__!'_ thought Empress Celine.

"Just answer one question: what made you change your mind?" asked the Empress in a warmer voice.

_'You were about to do the same mistake as me: sacrifice your child in the name of politics! It's good you came back to your senses!' _thought Alistair.

"My son. He showed me how important it is to listen to your heart again." said Alistair. "He deserves to be happy!" said the king smiling "And your daughter deserves it too!" Alistair grinned and looked at Clarissa who was staring at the floor very sadly.

Clarissa raised her head slowly and looked her mother into the eyes "Mother, please... I don't want to marry for duty either!" she whispered in a soft voice, begging.

Empress Celine looked surprised at her daughter. She knew about her infatuation with that young Chevalier from the Court. Her older daughter, Sabrinne, was married out of duty, to a man that cheated at her with every young girl he found available; Sabrinne was so unhappy! Empress Celine swallowed hard. She felt her heart flinch, she started to understand the king now! The Stony Lady softened, her eyes changed suddenly from icy to warmth. She felt pity for her young daughter, her flesh and blood, her beloved child. The king of Ferelden was right. Her daughter was more important than politics. How could she be so blind? She had married for duty, twice, in fact. Her mother had married for duty and so had her grandmother... her great-grandmother too. Everybody in their family had married for duty! Well, except for that crazy uncle of hers who had run away with a young elven girl. He had been banished from their family and disowned. Empress Celine had been raised like this, to do her duty, to sacrifice her own happiness for the country. And she had raised her daughters in the same way; she had forced her oldest daughter into an arranged marriage with a prince from Tevinter. She realized it now: she had destroyed her oldest daughter's life and she was about to sacrifice Clarissa too in the name of duty! She sighed deeply.

"We shall sign another peace treaty." she whispered warmly, then she regain her proud Imperial stature. "But know this: any signs of hostility will mean WAR!"_ 'I can't believe that he won! But maybe it's better this way!'_ she thought.

"Fair enough!" said Alistair smiling. _'Damn! I'm getting better at this politics thing!' _thought the king of Ferelden to himself.

They signed the peace treaty immediately. The Empress and her daughter then left Ferelden and returned to Orlais in a hurry.

Teagan, who had watched the whole scene, was now grinning from ear to ear. Alistair approached him and said, "Teagan, I'm sorry, my friend! I was such a heartless bastard!" in a warm voice.

Teagan looked the king in the eyes. "You were indeed, my friend!" he said smiling.

"I have this chancellor job available, but it seems I cannot find the right person for it! I need someone I can trust with my life, someone that wouldn't be afraid to tell me the brutal truth. Someone that would be brave enough to argue with the king without being scared of the consequences." said Alistair warmly. "Someone like you, my friend. Please, Teagan, be my Chancellor again!" he begged.

"Apology accepted!" said Teagan smiling. "I would be honored to be your Chancellor again, Alistair!"

"Thank you, my friend!" said Alistair smiling and the two men hugged each other.

"You really broke that stone heartless bitch into small pieces!" said Teagan laughing. "She almost fainted; I never saw her flinch or tremble before!"

"She was bluffing!" said Alistair smiling.

"I knew it!" said Duncan smiling. "You knew that she was bluffing, Father!"

"Well, I had a hunch, my heart told me so. But no, I wasn't sure of it. I just had to try it and make sure that my heart was right!" said Alistair as he winked at Duncan.

"So you really risked war with Orlais?" asked Duncan confusedly.

"Yes, I was ready for war too! I was not bluffing!" said Alistair in a serious tone.

"Well, it's good that _she_ was!" said Teagan laughing.

All the nobles from the room looked confusedly at the king who had just defeated the Stony Lady in front of them and had avoided a war with Orlais. They could not believe their eyes; nobody wanted war, and trade was very good between the two countries. Both Ferelden and Orlesian nobles were making big profits from these trade routes. After a few moments, the nobles recovered from the shock and smiled happily. They started discussions about further trade contracts, since there would be peace after all between the two nations.

"~~~~~~~~~~~~~~"

On the way back to Orlais, Princess Clarissa mustered up all her courage and asked her mother to marry the man she loved. Empress Celine looked sadly at her youngest daughter and sighed deeply. "We'll see!" said the Empress in a warm tone.

It was not the words, but the warmth and calmness in the Empress's voice that made Clarissa smile beautifully and hug her mother suddenly. It was a tone she hadn't heard for so long... since she was a little child, in fact. Something changed inside her mother that day, and Clarissa thanked the Maker for this.

The Empress smiled and hugged her daughter back, holding her closer. She just remembered that she hadn't hugged her daughter for years. She had never seen her daughter so happy before! Empress Celine smiled happily and closed her eyes, enjoying the moment and making a promise to herself: the Empire's affairs would have to wait for some time, until she would fix her family issues. She would make that young Chevalier a noble, and then allow her youngest daughter to marry him. She would also annul Sabrinne's marriage with that awful man that made her daughter suffer so much. Yes, today the Stony Lady had learned a painful lesson from the king of Ferelden, but she was grateful for it!

"~~~~~~~~~~~~~~"

_**N/A**__: Next chapter: Alistair versus the Grand Cleric! _


	6. Beware the Maker's Punishment

_This chapter tries to express my arguments regarding the way the Chantry misjudged the mages in DAO. I have this huge sympathy for all that poor mages that had been locked in the Circle of Mages Tower. Please bear with me through this chapter!_

_This chapter contains fragments from the 'Chant of Light'. I don't own any of the quotes, Bioware does. _

_Many thanks to my Beta Goddess, **Zeeji**!_

**Chapter 23: Beware the Maker's Punishment!**

"_God allows us to experience the low points of life in order to__ teach us lessons we could not learn in any other way. The way we learn those lessons is not to deny the feelings but to find the meanings underlying them". ~Stanley Lindquist_

Alistair was sitting at his desk in his royal office, writing something on a piece of paper. Duncan was standing in front of him, staring in surprise at his father.

"And how are you going to convince the Grand Cleric? Ela is a mage... she cannot bear titles." said Duncan with a lot of confusion in his voice.

"Well, son, it's time for the mages to finally have rights." said the king.

"Wow, you're going to give rights to _all_ the mages, Father?" asked Duncan.

"Yes, Duncan, it's not fair to have exceptions, we're going to free _all_ the mages. I think they don't deserve all this oppression. I think it's time for Ferelden to change." said Alistair.

Duncan looked with surprise at Alistair. His father was known as a fair and just king. He could not give rights only to one mage, to Ela; it would have been too unfair to the other mages. The king had signed another important decree regarding the mages twenty years ago. It allowed the mages to live outside the Tower, so long as they had a guardian, a templar living close to them. This law had saved Ela Cousland from being locked into the Circle of Mages Tower, as Elissa had templar training and was allowed to be her daughter's guardian. Duncan smiled as he realized how much he admired his father.

As soon as Alistair finished writing the decree, he signed it and got up from the desk.

"Tell the Grand Cleric to come in!" said Alistair to a servant that was standing in front of the king's office.

An old woman, around seventy years old_**,**_ entered the king's office slowly. It was the Grand Cleric of Ferelden, the leader of the Chantry. She was second only to the Divine from Orlais, who was at the very top of the Chantry's hierarchy.

"Ah, Grand Cleric!" said Alistair as the Grand Cleric entered his office.

"Your Majesty..." said the Grand Cleric as she bowed to the king.

Alistair approached the Grand Cleric, holding the decree in his right hand.

"I've called you here to discuss something of great importance for Ferelden, your Eminence," said the king in a calm tone. "I've just signed a decree that frees all the mages from the Chantry. I need you to sign it too."

The Grand Cleric flinched. She opened her jaw in surprise, her eyes widened. She stared at the king for a few moments, then she regained her proudly stature.

"No! I'll never allow that! Hasn't your Majesty done enough? There are dangerous mages scattered all over Ferelden!" yelled the Grand Cleric. "They should all be locked inside that Tower!"

"They are not all dangerous." said the king.

The Grand Cleric looked proudly at the king. "Magic exists to serve man, and never to rule over him." she recited.

"This doesn't mean that we should treat them like slaves." said Alistair in defense.

"They are not to be trusted." continued the Grand Cleric.

"They are people like us." said Alistair.

"Magic is evil!" said the Grand Cleric furiously.

"Healing is not evil, not all magic is evil." stated the king. "Magic is just a tool, like a sword or a bow. Just because they have the power to hurt people doesn't mean that they are really going to do it!"

"Magic exists to serve man, and never to rule over him.

Foul and corrupt are they

Who have taken His gift

And turned it against His children.

They shall be named Maleficar, accursed ones.

They shall find no rest in this world

Or beyond.

_-Transfigurations 1:2_." recited the Grand Cleric.

"They are abominations in the sight of the Maker!" said the Grand Cleric irritably.

"They are just people like us, but with special abilities." said the king calmly. "There are worst abominations in this world, like those people who take away _babies_ from their parents, for example."

"And So is the Golden City blackened

With each step you take in my Hall.

Marvel at perfection, for it is fleeting.

You have brought Sin to Heaven

And doom upon all the world.

_-Threnodies 8.13_" recited the Grand Cleric.

"They had brought sin into the house of the Maker!" yelled the Grand Cleric.

"That was long time ago and they were different people…" said the king. "We don't really know what happened back then."

"Those who had sought to claim

Heaven by violence destroyed it. What was

Golden and pure turned black.

Those who had once been mage-lords,

The brightest of their age,

Were no longer men, but monsters

_-Threnodies 12:1_" recited the Grand Cleric.

"Oh, just a misinterpretation of some ancient scrolls..." said Alistair calmly. "Tell me, Grand Cleric, why did the Maker create the mages then?"

"This is blasphemy!" yelled the Grand Cleric.

"Look, we don't know the whole truth here." said Alistair in a harsh tone.

"The Maker knows the truth!" said the Grand Cleric furiously. "He would have told us if it would have been a so called '_misinterpretation_'."

"Really? Are you sure about it? Would you like an audience with the Maker?" said the king smiling sarcastically.

The Grand Cleric frowned and stared speechless at the king.

"I can arrange _that_!" he said as he placed his right hand on the pommel of his sword.

"You wouldn't dare!" yelled the Grand Cleric as she walked one step backwards.

"I have the power..." Alistair said as he frowned. "Don't make me use it!"

'_And there it is! That priceless look on the Grand Cleric's face! Oh, how I wish I could make a painting of it and keep it in my office... to look at it whenever I feel sad! Ah, too bad I cannot paint!_' thought the king to himself.

"NO!" yelled the Grand Cleric. "The Maker will punish us! It's a great sin, I cannot..."

But she didn't finish her sentence, because she felt her heart beating heavily, her breathing getting faster. She started to tremble. Her head was too heavy; her eyes closed slowly as she suddenly felt dizzy. Her feet could not hold her on the ground any longer.

'_Oh, Maker! I didn't want to kill her! Just threaten her! Wow! Words really have power; they are stronger than a sword sometimes!_' thought the king as he caught the fainted Grand Cleric in his arms.

"Duncan! Get the healer! Quickly!" yelled Alistair.

The Grand Cleric saw a powerful light, she felt dragged somewhere; she could not see anything because the intense light was blinding her. Suddenly, she was in an empty endless room without windows and doors. There was a glowing sphere in front of her, something shining brightly. She heard some words coming from that glowing sphere. _"Free the mages!_" the entity said in a whispering voice; it was a very soft tone, like a child's voice, followed by a small echo. Then she felt dragged again and the light disappeared.

She heard someone talking very close to her, a young man: "I cast a resurrection spell... her heart had been stopped for a few seconds... she should recover soon."

"Thank you, William! You saved her life!" she heard the king saying.

A mage! A healer. The king's healer. He had saved _her_, the Grand Cleric. The one that hated mages so much. The one that wanted to lock them all in the Tower and burn it to the ground. Maker... was that voice... could it be that she had just heard the Maker talk to her? _'Free the mages... the Maker wants me to free the mages?'_ she thought to herself. But was that _really_ the Maker? She would have expected to see an old man with long beard or something similar, not a glowing sphere... had it really been the Maker? She opened her eyes slowly. She saw the young mage genuinely smiling at her.

"You'll be alright, your Eminence." said the young mage in a warm voice.

"This young mage has just used healing magic to save you, your Eminence." said the king warmly. "He has just saved your life! Magic is not evil!"

She did not say a word. She just stared at the mage and at the king. _'Maybe the king is right. Healing is not evil..._' thought the Grand Cleric as she looked at the mage. What had just happened? Did she pass out for a few moments? Had she been dead or just fainted? Then she remembered the king's words... the mage _had_ saved her life... so she must have been dead for a few moments. This made sense... maybe she _did_ meet the Maker! The Grand Cleric was confused. _'The Maker works in mysterious ways!_' thought the Grand Cleric.

"Thank you!" said the Grand Cleric as she stared at the young healer in front of her.

The young man looked sincerely happy to see her well; he was glad that she was alright.

"You're welcome, your Eminence!" said the young man as he bowed politely to the Grand Cleric.

'_This nice young man doesn't seem evil... he just saved my life. It must have been a sign from the Maker! The mages will be freed!'_ thought the Grand Cleric as she got up from the floor, helped by the king and the mage.

"You can tell the Maker that I forced you to sign this decree. I don't care!" said the king in a warm tone. "Let it be my sin, then! You're innocent in the sight of the Maker... I, Alistair Theirin, take the whole responsibility for freeing the mages."

The Grand Cleric looked at the king. He was very determined to free the mages. He wanted to help his son be happy, to marry the woman he loved. A mage! A mage was about to become Queen of Ferelden. It was a great sin... how could the Maker allow that? But that sign from the Maker, that voice... it said clearly the words that hurt her so much, _"Free the mages!" _So this was the Maker's will!

"As your Majesty wishes!" said the Grand Cleric bowing politely to the king.

The Grand Cleric approached the king's desk and signed the decree that freed all the mages of Ferelden from the Chantry's suppression.

And that day remained marked in Ferelden's history as the day the mages were finally allowed to bear titles, marry and live a normal life; to be humans or elves again, not some supposedly dangerous creatures locked inside a Tower!


	7. The Rainbow

_Many thanks to **Zeeji**, my Beta Reader! She's a great writer. Her story, 'Seeing Clearly', is interesting and very well written, a real roller coaster ride of emotions._

**Chapter 25: The Rainbow**

"_And when it rains on your parade, look up rather than down. Without the rain, there would be no rainbow."~ Gilbert K. Chesterton_

It was raining heavily and the water made the roads muddy. The king's party was slowly approaching Vigil's Keep. The beautiful royal horse-drawn carriage was covered in brown silk, decorated with big crown ornaments made of pure, shining gold. The carriage was surrounded by twenty well-armed guards, riding on twenty beautiful black horses. Inside the royal carriage, the king and his son were sitting on a bench, talking.

"Do you think she's going to like it?" said Duncan as he stared at a beautiful golden ring that he was holding in his hand.

The polished golden ring, made by the royal goldsmith himself - the best in all the Ferelden - was very exquisite, a real masterpiece. A little golden heart was placed the middle of the ring, with some small delicate emeralds on it. A big shining emerald stone had been braced inside the heart. The ring had some words inscribed on it: _'__I'll_ _love you, always, Ela'_.

"Son, she's gonna love it!" said Alistair smiling.

"I've dreamed of this moment for so long... I still can't believe that it's real!" said Duncan.

"Well, it _is_ real, Duncan. Do you want me to pinch you?" said Alistair as he pinched his son.

"Ouch, dad!" yelled Duncan.

"See, it's not a dream, Duncan." said Alistair, laughing.

Duncan started to laugh too. "I see that you have regained your sense of humor, father."

"Yes, son. My sense of humor and my heart." said Alistair.

"Thank you so much, father! I'm so grateful... I have no words for it." said Duncan as he hugged his father.

"Well, I think a hug says it all, son." said Alistair as he hugged his son back.

"I still don't understand why the Grand Cleric changed her mind so easily? She seemed rather skeptical... yet she signed the decree as soon as she recovered from the fainting." said Duncan with confusion in his voice.

"I didn't give her any other choice. That's what intimidation means... but I think there was more there. Something else changed her mind so quickly. Let's call it... '_the Maker's hand_', son. " said the king as he winked at his son.

"Riiiight!" said Duncan smiling. "She did growl something... I didn't understand it right... something like: '_It's the Maker's Will'._"

"Yeah, I heard that too." said Alistair. "Well, it's good to have the Maker on our side, son."

'_Thank you, Maker for this chance to fix my mistake and let my son be happy! He deserves to be happy!_' thought the king to himself. His son would marry the woman he loved, despite all the prejudices and obstacles, despite the fact that they had changed Ferelden's entire beliefs and traditions. It had been a real revolution, a difficult fight, but I was all worth it!

"~~~~~~~~~~~~~~"

Ela was sitting on her bed, petting her faithful mabari hound. She was very sad and broken since she had heard that gossip about Duncan in the hallway. She knew that Duncan loved her and that he wanted to be with her, not with some Orlesian princess, but the young woman was also aware of the fact that the king needed to marry Duncan to a princess. She was not a fool, she understood politics. This was an arranged marriage, another alliance with Orlais.

Ela had refused to get out of her room for the last two days, because she was afraid she would hear more details about that beautiful Orlesian princess and the preparations for Duncan's wedding. Her mother and father had both tried to comfort her, but she had refused to eat and leave her room. She had only let Spotty go in and out of the room from time to time. The dog had sensed her pain and was sad too. It looked at its master and whimpered.

It was already dawn, and the rain that had deluged Vigil's Keep for the last two days finally stopped. The rain had felt as though the weather was in synch with her own pain – like the sky had been crying too. Suddenly, the sun arose, unexpectedly illuminating the lands.

"~~~~~~~~~~~~~~"

As soon as the king's party reached Vigil's Keep, the rain stopped and the first rays of the sun shown over the treetops. There were mud puddles allover the Keep's yard, as it had been raining for two days and two nights continuously. As the king and his son got out of the carriage, they immediately noticed that there was also a deep silence at the Keep.

They were greeted by some guards; then a servant ran inside the keep to announce the king's presence. After a few moments, the Warden Commander came out of the Keep, followed by Anders. As the two Wardens bowed and greeted the king and his son, Alistair noticed that they both looked very sad, even a little angry.

"Have you come to deliver the unpleasant news yourself?" said Anders angrily, as he suddenly frowned at the king in front of him.

'_That's about it! I'm going to do it... I'm going to cast a small light-bolt towards that royal bastard's a-_', thought the mage to himself as he raised his hands and prepared to cast a light-bolt spell.

"Stop it, Anders!" yelled Elissa as she sensed him starting to cast the spell.

"But he's the reason our daughter suffers! Because of his arrangements she's locked herself in her room for the last two days!" yelled Anders.

"NO! Anders, stop it NOW or I'll holy smite you!" threatened Elissa.

"Fine!" said Anders angrily as he dropped his hands and stopped casting the spell.

Alistair smiled. "Actually, I'm here to deliver pleasant news." said the king.

"Really?" asked Anders suspiciously.

"Yes. We are actually here to ask for your daughter's hand." said Alistair as he raised an eyebrow.

Elissa and Anders remained speechless, just staring at the king and his son with their mouths opened.

"I'm sorry... what?" asked Elissa suddenly.

"Lady Cousland, Sir Anders, I would like to ask for permission to marry your daughter. Please. I love her." said Duncan calmly.

"We... we know that you love each other... but what about the engagement with the Orlesian Princess?" asked Elissa as she immediately frowned.

"Oh, haven't you heard the latest gossip?" said Alistair smiling.

"The Grumpy Commander, here," said Anders as he pointed at Elissa with his finger, "Had just fired two servant girls who were gossiping in the hallway two days ago. Nobody _dares _to gossip in the Keep anymore."

Elissa immediately lost her temper. "Well, they deserved it!" yelled the angry Commander. "Their gossip made Ela upset and she's locked herself in her room since then, since she's afraid to hear more _details_."

"Then let me bring you the latest news!" said the king smiling. "There is no engagement, and the mages are free."

Anders got dizzy and almost fell on the ground because of the shock. He was lucky that Elissa caught him in time, or he would have hit himself pretty badly. They both stared at each other for a few moments, with their mouths opened, then turned and looked at Alistair and Duncan, not believing their ears. Anders pinched himself pretty hard. It was not a dream.

"I can't believe that I have lived to see the day the mages are finally freed from the Chantry!" yelled Anders, as he practically jumped on Alistair and hugged him. "Hey, you're not so bad! I've just changed my opinion about you, Alistair."

"Yeah, you're welcome... I think." said Alistair as he pushed the mage away from this unexpected embrace.

"Thank you, Alistair!" said Elissa smiling at the king.

"You're welcome. Our children deserve to be happy." said Alistair smiling back.

"So Ela is in her room?" asked Duncan worried.

"Yes, she's locked herself in there. Doesn't want to talk to us... with anybody, in fact." said Anders sadly.

"Well, I'll just go and talk to her." said Duncan as he ran away towards the Keep's entrance.

"~~~~~~~~~~~~~~"

Duncan got quickly in front of Ela's door and started to knock. There was no response. He knocked harder. He heard a few words spoken in a weak voice: "Go away! I don't want to talk, Mother!"

"Not even with me?" said Duncan.

He heard some noise, like somebody had just fallen on the floor. Then a dog barked happily. The door opened and Spotty jumped on him.

"Hi, Spotty! I see you missed me, girl!" said Duncan as he petted the dog.

He raised his head and looked at Ela, who was standing at the door. She looked very tired; her eyes were red from crying. She was very pale and sad; she looked like she had been crying for two days and two nights.

"Duncan..." she whispered weakly.

He took her in his arms and kissed her gently. "My love..." he whispered as soon as he ended the kiss.

"I... I heard about your...eng-" she tried to say the word that hurt her so much.

"Don't!" he said as he placed his hand on her mouth. "There is no such thing!"

She stared at him with her beautiful eyes opened wide, not saying a word.

"I promised you that I won't give up on you, Ela. Never!" he said smiling.

He gently placed her on a chair, and knelt down in front of her, as he took the beautiful ring out of his pocket.

"Ela Cousland, would you do me the honor of becoming my wife?" he said as he handed her the ring.

She stared at Duncan with her mouth opened, and then she pinched herself hard. It was not a dream.

"Duncan... what about your father?" she asked him with fear in her voice.

"He agrees with this. He even freed the mages!" said Duncan smiling brightly.

Ela pinched herself again, not believing her ears.

"Really?" she asked after a few moments of silence. She looked at the ring. It was the most beautiful ring she had ever seen in her entire life!

"So, do you like it?" asked Duncan worried.

"I... I love it!" she said smiling.

She just stood there, staring at the ring, then at Duncan, who was grinning from ear to ear. "YES! The answer is 'Yes'!" she said suddenly, after a few moments of deep silence.

He got up quickly and took her in his arms, kissing her. He placed the ring on her finger, and looked into her eyes. "I told you that you'll eventually be my wife." he said with a lot of satisfaction in his voice.

"I never even dared to dream about it!" she said. "I heard that gossip and I locked myself in this room because I was afraid that I would find out more details about that beautiful princess and your wedding." She swallowed hard.

"I'm sorry, Ela. Gossip travels pretty fast through Ferelden, doesn't it?" he said. "But it doesn't matter anymore. Things have changed in a better way. Even father has changed."

Duncan told Ela everything that had happened in the last two days. He told her about the Empress and the Grand Cleric, about how his father had changed. Ela just stood there, listening and not believing her ears.

Then Ela washed her face from the many tears that she had cried. She freshened up a bit, and they both walked arm in arm to their parents to discuss the preparations for the wedding. They found them in the Keep's yard admiring a beautiful rainbow.

"~~~~~~~~~~~~~~"

It was a big celebration for all of Ferelden, as Prince Duncan was getting married to Lady Ela Cousland. Who would have thought that this would ever happen: a mage, of all things, would become the wife of a Prince and eventually the future Queen of Ferelden! Yet there it was; the beautiful bride was standing in front of the Grand Cleric, smiling happily at the Prince, who seemed to share her happiness. She was wearing an exquisite white silk dress with delicate golden embroidery around her arms and collarbone. A beautiful golden necklace with big emerald stones that matched both her eyes and the fancy ring on her finger was hanging around her delicate neck.

The Grand Cleric looked very serious, as she did not completely recover from the shock produced by the Maker's sign. She growled something like '_It is the Maker's Will_' in a very low voice, and then she stared to recite a reading from a book. Nobody knew about her vision, she had been too__embarrassed to share it with anyone else.

All the nobles from Ferelden were gathered in the Palace's Landsmeet room, attending the wedding ceremony. Alistair, Elissa and Anders were standing close to the bride and groom, smiling happily.

As soon as the Grand Cleric finished the wedding speech, Duncan kissed his beautiful bride and the young Prince and his wife waved at the cheerful crowd. Then the king congratulated them, followed soon by Elissa and Anders.

The Prince and Princess went outside, on a big balcony, and waved at the crowd of Ferelden citizens that had gathered to see them. The people cheered happily and admired the beautiful young couple. Some women whispered that the Prince and the Princess matched so well and made the__most perfect couple that they had ever seen in their entire lives.

A celebration with music and lots of food and drinks began immediately in all Ferelden and lasted through the night. Some people gossiped about how the King had ruined the Empress's plans to add Ferelden to her Imperium by a tricky alliance; others said that the Grand Cleric had started to lose her mind; a sister from the Chantry had heard her say that the Maker was a '_shining ball_'. But eventually they all partied together, even the recently freed mages, and people said that it had been the best celebration ever!

"~~~~~~~~~~~~~~"


	8. Two Become One

_Many thanks to **Zeeji**, my Beta Reader and to all of you who read this story!_

**Epilogue - Two Become One**

"_In the end, it's not going to matter how many breaths you took, but how many moments took your breath away."~ Shing Xiong_

Alistair received the cure for the taint from Anders and was spared from the awful Warden Calling. He remained king for many years and had continued to teach Duncan all he knew, sharing all his experience, so that his son would take his place after his death.

Ela gave birth to a beautiful little girl, one year after their wedding. They named her Moira, after Alistair's grandmother. Then, after two more years, Ela had a little boy; a beautiful baby with green eyes. She called him Bryce, after Elissa's father.

Over the course of twenty five years, Duncan slowly took over his father's activities. He was eventually crowned king earlier than expected, because Alistair's health deteriorated and he was not able to perform his kingly duties anymore.

Elissa and Anders had remained at Vigil's Keep, performing their duties, but they visited their daughter and grandchildren each week. Anders cured all the Wardens from Ferelden and changed the joining ritual so that there would be no more deaths. His research changed the Wardens destiny forever.

After fifty years of marriage with the love of his life, Anders's health deteriorated and he died peacefully on a sunny Saturday morning. Elissa organized a grandiose funeral ceremony at Vigil's Keep; Alistair, Duncan, Ela and their children attended it.

"~~~~~~~~~~~~~~"

A week had already passed since Anders's funeral. Alistair had remained at the keep to comfort Elissa, while Duncan and his family had returned to Denerim. It was evening and the sun was already getting low in the sky. Alistair walked out in the yard to search for Elissa. He found her in the garden, seated on a bench. He gently took a seat close to her and tried to gather all his courage. He wanted to give Elissa the ring he had bought her fifty two years previously, as his heart was weak and he knew that he did not have much longer to live.

"I wanted to give you this ring, although it has lost its meaning," said Alistair holding the ring in his hand. "I wanted to give this ring to you 52 years ago. I bought it just after our first night together. I was about to propose to you, but I..." he sighed deeply. "I was a fool and I postponed it..." He swallowed hard. "Then things got complicated, Eamon said that I should wait. And I..." He sighed again. "I listened to him like the fool I was."

She looked at him in surprise. He was almost crying, and it broke her heart.

"I..." She swallowed hard too. "I don't know what to say!" A tear fell from her right eye. "Better late than never?" She sighed deeply. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have said that..." She smiled sadly. "I... thank you!"

"I'm so glad that I had this chance to give this ring to you, even if it's so late, but I'm really grateful to the Maker for it!" he whispered as he looked at her. "Do you still hate me so much?"

"Oh, Alistair! It's been almost fifty two years! I... I forgave you so long ago." she said smiling and looking at him. "I could _never_ hate you!"

"That's _so_ good to hear." he said as his face brightened. "Thank you! This means so much to me!"

"Thank _you_!" she said as she kissed his cheek gently.

She stared at the simple golden ring that he had placed in her hand. The ring had a simple small stone on it. It was an emerald; as green as the color of her eyes. She looked closer and saw that there were some tiny letters engraved on the ring. She couldn't read them, as her sight had weakened over the years.

He saw her staring at the ring, trying to read the letters. "It says: 'I love you, always, Elissa!'" he whispered, as he smiled and looked into her eyes.

She started to blush. "Oh, that's so... beautiful!" she said.

"_You're_ beautiful!" he said boldly.

She laughed. "Your sight may be playing tricks on you." said Elissa. "My face is wreathed in wrinkles and I lost my beauty long ago."

"Your eyes are still the same... the ones I love so much." said Alistair, smiling brightly. "You've aged well. You're still beautiful to me."

She blushed harder. "You still know how to make me blush." she said. "You've aged well too."

"Really?" he asked raising an eyebrow.

"Your eyes are still so kind and warm... I could never forget them!" said Elissa as she looked into his eyes, which were shining in the moon light.

He felt her happiness, then something else too: love. But he wasn't sure if it was his love for her or her love for him. '_It's now or never!_' he thought as he decided to throw caution to the wind.

"I never stopped loving you!" he whispered.

She felt something strange, an extreme joy. She knew that Alistair's words had made her happy, but this feeling seemed different. Then she realized that she still loved Alistair too and it would only be fair if she told him. She did love Anders, but she had never stopped loving Alistair. Her health was getting worse; she knew that she would probably die soon.

"I... I think … I still love you too!" she said, smiling.

He got closer to her and kissed her slowly. She placed an arm around his neck and gently touched his cheek with her other hand. He pulled her closer to him and kissed her deeply.

"It's been so long..." he said as soon as he ended the kiss.

"Yes, so long..." she answered with sadness in her voice.

"Do you still remember our adventures through Ferelden?" he asked.

"Yes, most of them, I think." she said.

"Let's see how good your memory is!" he said smiling. "Do you remember Sten's obsession?"

"How could I forget _that_?" she said smiling. "Cookies!"

"Right!" he said laughing. "Your turn now!"

"What was Leliana's favorite flower?" asked Elissa.

"Hey! That's not fair! That was a trick question! I never gave _her_ flowers!" he said offended.

"Alright, something else, then." she said, smiling. "What was the name of Morrigan's mother?"

"Flemeth." he said sadly. "Did you really have to bring Morrigan to my mind?"

"Sorry." she said. She bit her lip and then decided to ask him an important question. "What happened to your child?" she asked boldly, after a few moments of silence.

"I... I really don't know." he said. "There had been some rumors about a Tevinter clan that is worshiping an Old God, somewhere on a deserted mountain in Orlais. People said that they even saw a dragon there... those cultists are worshiping a dragon."

"Oh, really? Not again!" said Elissa.

"Yeah, some other fanatics." he said sadly.

"Do you ever regret that you did that ritual?" she asked with fear in her voice.

"No, never. It saved you. I couldn't live with the thought that you would have died when I could have done something to stop it... It was the best choice." he answered.

"But you never saw your... child?" she asked worriedly.

"I had some strange dreams a few years ago. I saw a black haired man with golden eyes in some of my dreams." he confessed.

"Maker!" she exclaimed. "You think it was your son?"

"Yes, in fact, he even called me _Father_ in one of my dreams." said Alistair. "Then he shape-shifted into a dragon and flew away."

"Holy Maker! said Elissa, scared.

"Duncan knows everything. He would have to find out what the consequences of this compromise will eventually be... I hope they won't be disastrous." he said worriedly.

"Did he want anything from you?" she asked.

"No, he just stared at me and only said the word 'Father'." answered Alistair.

"Maybe he's not evil!" said Elissa.

"I hope so... we'll never know." said Alistair. "Let's talk about something else. Please."

And they stayed seated on that bench the whole night just talking and remembering their adventures through Ferelden, smiling and laughing from time to time.

When the dawn came, Alistair and Elissa admired the beautiful sun that was rising slowly on the sky. It was late spring and the garden was full of beautiful flowers. The first rays of the sun were dancing through the trees and flowers, making the garden look beautiful. The birds started to sing happily. It was a real splendor!

Suddenly, Elissa placed her head on his chest and closed her eyes. She felt dragged somewhere and saw a blinding light. Alistair placed his lips on her forehead and closed his eyes too. He saw her walking towards the light.

"Elissa!" he screamed as he was running behind her. She stopped and turned, waiting for him to reach her. She was young again and was smiling brightly. He took her hand and they both walked slowly into the light.

"~~~~~~~~~~~~~~"

A servant found Elissa and Alistair, seated on a bench in the garden, in each other's arms; they were both lifeless, but smiling beautifully.

That day, at dawn, two incomplete souls, part of a twin soul, had both return to the Maker at the same time. The Maker greeted them and smiled.

"You have returned to me, my children!" said the Maker as he took both souls in his hands.

"You were meant to be together forever, never apart, yet you both got lost in the twisted labyrinth of insignificant materialistic mortal goals and selfish interests."

The Maker sighed deeply. "But this ends here, my beloved children, because I shall make you WHOLE again."

And then the Maker gently merged the souls with his hands. They became ONE, complete soul again… and will remain like that FOREVER.

"~~~~~~~~~~~~~~"

_I think the following song lyrics are suitable for the end of this story._

_**Michael Bublé -"Lost"**_

_I can't believe it's over_

_I watched the whole thing fall_

_And I never saw the writing that was on the wall_

_If I'd only knew_

_The days were slipping past_

_That the good things never last_

_That you were crying_

_Summer turned to winter_

_And the snow it turned to rain_

_And the rain turned into tears upon your face_

_I hardly recognized the girl you are today_

_And, God, I hope it's not too late_

_It's not too late_

_'Cause you are not alone_

_I'm always there with you_

_And we'll get lost together_

_Till the light comes pouring through_

_'Cause when you feel like you're done_

_And the darkness has won_

_Babe, you're not lost_

_When your worlds crashing down_

_And you can't bear the thought_

_I said, babe, you're not lost_

_Life can show no mercy_

_It can tear your soul apart_

_It can make you feel like you've gone crazy_

_But you're not_

_Things have seem to changed_

_There's one thing that's still the same_

_In my heart you have remained_

_And we can fly fly fly away_

_'Cause you are not alone_

_And I am there with you_

_And we'll get lost together_

_Till the light comes pouring through_

_'Cause when you feel like you're done_

_And the darkness has won_

_Babe, you're not lost_

_When the world's crashing down_

_And you can not bear to crawl_

_I said, baby, you're not lost!_

"~~~~~~~~~~~~~~"

THE END

"~~~~~~~~~~~~~~"

_**A/N:**_ _This was a dramatic ending... not my favorite type, but Alistair and Elissa had their "happy ever after" ending in another story. Fair enough?_

_Thank you so much for reading this story. I know that I'm not a skilled writer - I'm just an amateur that had the courage to write a story in English - but still, I hope that you enjoyed reading it._


End file.
